Broken Bluejay
by BlondiesLittleThoughts
Summary: Lilliana Monroe had a lot on her plate. During the day she was a college psych major, raising her five siblings, and taking care of her sick aunt. During the night, she took care of the entire city of Bludhaven. Her best friend Dick Grayson was always there for her during the day, at night she had Nightwing by her side. She just wished they were the same person.
1. Lilliana Monroe

Lilliana came from one of the wealthiest families in Bludhaven. Yet, as shown by the Wayne family, wealthy doesn't mean you can avoid tragedy. What it does mean, is that despite tragedy you can afford to buy a cup of coffee before you go to class without worrying about the cost of either. Thats exactly what Lilliana Monroe was doing. She had already dropped her younger siblings off at their respective schools, before she swung into the Grind House Cafe. Not bothering to glance around, the young girl walked her usual path to the counter and pulled out her phone to wait to order her drink. Her mind began to wander to the day that she had ahead of her. It was a typical day for her, jam packed to the brim with no possible way of fitting anything else in her schedule. Knowing her life though, something would happen that she would be forced to fit into her schedule. Lilliana began to mentally check things off in her head. First she had her classes, today's were Cognitive and Developmental Psychology. Second, she had to get her homework done on her lunch break, before heading off to the gym. The rest of the day would be consumed by picking up her younger siblings up from their school, and helping them with homework, before cooking dinner and doing some cleaning. You would think the day would end there, but it was the halfway point for her. After she put the kids to bed, she would 'retire' to her room, where she would sneak out the window under the guise of the Bluejay. She had been donning the blue wig and mask for over 6 years now. She started when she was 14, after she first saw the Boy Wonder by the Bats' side. To her, it didn't matter if he had a mentor or proper training, if someone else could do it, why couldn't she. Lilliana got her ass kicked constantly, but she felt like it had to be done. She earned quite the rep as the little blue bird. At this point she even struck up a partnership the the Nightwing. They had started working together about three years ago when the former robin showed up in her town. She bit her lip thinking about the acrobat, he took a pretty hard hit last night form a thug. Lilliana wondered if he was doing okay. They had been working together for a while now, and she still had no idea who he was. Still, it was better that way. It kept everyone safe.

"What will you be have sweetheart?" Liliana looked up from her phone to find a young man on the other side of the counter, he looked Lilliana up and down before settling on the area below her chin. Lilliana shifted her bad on her arm, before pulling her jacket shut across her chest.

"Large Salted Carmel Mocha, and a chocolate croissant." Lilliana watched the young man smirk before typing her order in.

"Thats pretty typical, huh? Anything else for you, my phone number perhaps?" He leaned on the counter, and got way to close for comfort.

"Large black coffee, and a bagel." Lilliana pulled some cash out of her wallet and handed it to the man. "Thanks." While the skeevy barista went to go make the order, the objectified girl sent a quick text message out on her phone. It wasn't long before the bell on the door rang, and Lilliana felt a arm wrap around her shoulder, and she smiled before tucking her phone into her purse. The barista turned around and scowled before handing out the drinks.

"Mocha and croissant for the frigid bitch-" He handed the coffee to Lilliana, before going to grab the black coffee. Lilliana accepted the coffee without comment, before handing it to the man with his arm draped over her.

"Babe, heres' your coffee." Lilliana grabbed her black coffee before moving to the exit of the shop. Dick paused to reach into his jean pocket and grabbing a handful of change. He dropped it into the tip jar with a wink, before sipping his Carmel Mocha, and following Lilianna out of the door. Dick walked around to the driver's side of his car, and balanced his coffee as he climbed in. As soon as the door was shut, his passenger yelled, "You barista shouldn't be an ass, if your buying coffee you clearly haven't had any yet." Lilliana leaned back into the leather seat, before taking large drink of her hot beverage.

"He must be new if he thinks being a creep will get him numbers." Dick started the car towards their college campus.

"Plus, you could see he thought we were dating." Lilliana began to ate her bagel.

"You know I'd be your boyfriend anyday Ana, you don't have to send a 911 text." Dick reached over and pulled a piece of bagel off and popped it in his mouth, before finding a parking space in the campus. Lilliana just sighed.

"Dick, we've talked about this." They duo climbed out of the car, and began walking towards the building. "I'm just too busy."

"Won't make me stop asking. I just need one date to change your mind!" Dick tossed his empty cup in a trashcan along the path.

"Aunt Gina needs help with the kids, Blake started 2ed grade this year, and she can hardly keep up." Ana ducked underneath of Dick's arm as he opened the door to the building.

"I can always help with the kids, I have some experience babysitting my little brother who can be a bit of a devil." Dick smirked, as they paused outside of Lilliana's classroom. He didn't have to tell her that last time he babysat it ended up with Damien tied up, and Dick with a sword though his thigh. Lilliana smiled and opened the door.

"I wish I could Dicky."

"Ahh thats alright, Do you need a ride home?" Dick let the topic switch with ease.

"No I have one today, I'm free for lunch though? There's that new diner on campus that opened up, and we haven't gone yet." Dick nodded and moved to let Lilliana inside of her classroom.

"It's a date!" Dick hollered as he went to go walk to his class.

"It's not a date!" They both chuckled as they walked away from each other.

"Have you all done your homework?" Lilliana screamed though the apartment. She pushed at her short hair, trying to tuck the curls behind her ear. She looked around the apartment trying to find the children. They were fortunate enough to own the apartment, given the rent prices in the city and their large family. She spun back around and tried to tame the pots that were on the stove. "Regardless, Dinner's done!" And with that, the children began to come into the kitchen.

At first you had the set of twins. Mallory and James were always together. They were born together 11 years ago, and had both grown so much into themselves. Even if their self both happened to be studious kids, who were into mystery and crime shows. Mallory's glasses fogged as she walked into the heated kitchen. Her long brown hair, was tied up out of her face and a book was tucked under her arm. James scrolled through his phone, nearly walking into the counter.

"Mal, have you considered their age yet?" James jumped into the seat at the counter, glancing up from his phone.

"We don't know how old they were when started James." Mal made them both a plate before joining her twin at the counter.

"You guys still working on who the Birds are?" Ana winked before handing them both a glass of water. Reaching down to pick up the little girl that ran up to her, she sat her in a chair before giving her a fixed plate and some water.

"They are, uh, they are working on finding out who Bluejay-" She shoved a forkful of food in her mouth, "-and Nightwing are." Lilianna chucked and tightened the pigtails of the youngest child. Lucy was only a year old when their parents were killed, but she was growing into a hopeful 6 year old.

"Who do you think they are Lu?" Blake entered the room, his hands covered in paint. He sat down next to his little sister, even if he was only a year older.

"Blake, wash your hands." Lilliana had to constantly remind the boy to remove paint from his hand, as he was always elbow deep in some project of his.

"A princess and a prince." Lucy giggled.

"Thats crazy. Theres no-" James started to say, before Lilliana hit the back of his head with a wash cloth. The oldest sister grabbed another plate of food before walking down the hall, and slamming on the door where loud music was emitting through the door.

"Nicky!" Ana heard some shuffling on the other side of the door, and when it opened the last sibling in the house was hiding.

"What Ana?" Nick wiped his forehead on a towel that was in his hand. It was clear that he had just been working out.

"Since your too busy to join us, I thought I'd bring you dinner." Lilliana held out the plate of food.

"No. I have to make weight in a week, I've been trying to cut down." Nick went to go shut the door, but Lilliana stuck her shoe in the door holding it open.

"Fine, but can you pick up the Mal and James tomorrow? I have a meeting with Blake's teacher." Nick rolled his eyes and agreed before nudging Ana's foot out and shutting the door. Lilliana let out a sigh, before walking up the stairs to the second level of the apartment. She walked up to her Aunt's door before slowlyley opening the door. "Aunt Gina?" Looking around the room, Lilliana wanted to feel annoyed but instead felt sorrow. It was dusty, and most the furniture was outdated.

"Jenny is that you?" Aunt Gina came around the corner, and stared at Lilliana.

"No its me, Ana. I have dinner." Setting the food down on her Aunt's desk, she walked over to the curtains and pulled them back. "You really should let the light in, you might feel better." Her aunt ran up behind her and pulled them back shut.

"Jenny, you'll let the owls in!" Her aunt quickly moved back to the shadows. "You can't let the owls in." Lilliana grabbed the plate from the night prior, and exited the room. Lilliana leaned against the door to rest for a moment. Five years ago when her parents, Steve and Jenny Monroe, were killed in a car crash, Lilliana was only 16. Their mother's sister Gina came to live with them to keep the children together, as was their parents will. Once she arrived, Lilliana found that the death of her sister was much more than Gina could handle. After a few weeks it was clear that she couldn't handle raising a bunch of children. The role was quickly taken by Lilliana. Now that she's 21, it didn't matter much that her aunt was unable to raise children, but it was still kept a secret that it was the eldest Monroe that ran the entire household. It was no matter that it was no life for a child to live. During the ages where she was suppose to make mistakes and have fun, she burdened herself with raising her five younger siblings and her crazy aunt, not to mention guarding the city every night. Plus now she was working on her psych degree. She glanced at her watch. Just a few more hours until she was free.

Hey guys! I've been running this idea in my brain for a while and thought I would type it up. I know I tossed alot of people at you in this one so let me give you a little guide real quick for the siblings. Please let me know what you think of this chapter and let me know if this sounds lilke a story y'all would like to read!

The Monroe Siblings:

Lilianna / Ana / Bluejay : Age 21

Nick : Age 16

Mallory / Mal : Age 11

James : Age 11

Blake : Age 7

Lucy : Age 6


	2. Bluejay

Lilliana felt her best when she was Bluejay. It was in the long blue wig and black mask that she was able to be herself, and live her life. As much as she loved her family, they wore her out, and this way she could live for herself. She stretched at the edge of the rooftop, feeling her uniform expand with her breath. She heard footsteps on the rooftop behind her, and turned around, her hair catching in the wind.

"Sheesh, I think your getting quicker!" Nightwing gave her a quick wink. The leather clad girl jumped down from the ledge and back onto the more spacious rooftop with a smile.

"Or perhaps your getting slower?" Lilliana joked. Practically every night for the past three years Bluejay and Nightwing had patrolled the streets of Bludhaven. The number of nights that she had patrolled alone, since his arrival, could be counted on her fingers. "Do we have anything on the books tonight, other than running laps over the city?"

"Unfortunately not. I figured we'd run into something during our little chase." Dick scrolled though his smart watch, running through a list of police calls. They both sighed.

"Well, as much as I love being out here, if it's not busy tonight I'll probably head out." Lilliana rubbed at the back of her neck, glancing out at the lights of the city. Crime has been down for a while now. Once Nightwing came into town, it took them a while to get the city gangs under control, but once they did it was a pretty quiet town.

"Why, are you getting tired of me after all this time?" Nightwing faked disapointment, and pouted while leaning over the ledge. That got a small chuckle from the blue-haired girl next to him.

"Not at 'Wing." She turned around, leaning her back against the edge. "Some nights I just so happen to like more than a few hour of sleep." Lilliana leaned her head back, and Dick watched her hair get caught in the wind. They had been working together for so long and he didn't even know her real hair color. It seemed odd to him that he trusted this girl with his life, and he knew nothing about her. Dick had asked her once, if she wanted to know who he was, in hopes that she would reveal who she was as well. She had only laughed at him, and smiled. It was the same reasoning that anyone wouldn't want their secret identity out in the open, except she had stuck to it for years now. She had always told him that he shouldn't have to know who she was in order to trust her, and that her actions should speak for themselves. Whenever he pressed her for an answer, BlueJay would shut down and become practically silent. Grayson would never want to make her uncomfortable, especially after all the villains they had fought together, so he eventually stopped asking.

"Wait, how much sleep do you normally get?" Dick questioned. He knew in their line of work you couldn't always get a full eight hours but he still wanted to make sure she wasn't being self-destructive. He looked over at his partner when she didn't awnser and saw that her eyes were closed. "Blue!" Her eyes slowly opened, showing her soft green irises.

"Give or take? Two hours or so". She bounced off of the wall and began doing some simple stretches.

"How are you even alive right now?" Dick grabbed her arm and she twisted around, fully loosening the muscle.

"By necessity. Theres only so much time in the day to get everything done and unfortunately sleep doesn't make the top 20." Dick gave a soft smirk and surveyed the street below. He was used to Bruce getting much less sleep than that a night, but at least he knew what he was doing during the day. In this line of work it was really easy to burn out, and even though he didn't know exactly who Bluejay was, he worked with her every night for so long now he wanted to make sure she woudn't crash and burn.

"Okay, but don't crash on me in the middle of a fight." Dick put put up a pair of fists and threw a couple of mock punches. Bluejay playfully knocked the punches aside, before she heard the sirens from a store down the street. Throwing her gloved hands in the air, she fist pumped and grabbed Nightwinds' shoulder.

"Lets go, lets go, lets go!" Nightwing laughed as he shot a grapple at the opposing rooftop, and grabbed Bluejay around her waist before leaping off of the rooftop. They swung down and their boots hit the paved street. Sprinting down the the shop on the corner, they saw that the glass was busted out of the front widow. Even if it was just a simple burglary, Lilliana was excited to get some action in tonight. Using her thick gloves to clear off the windowsill of any glass, the blue haired vigillante climbed through the window, Nightwing following her through the shattered glass. The shop was a low end pawn shop, with glass displays for their more treasured items.

"Blue." Nightwing gave a hushed whisper before pointing her in the direction of the back room, as he nodded his head in the opposite direction. Taking in his directions the Bluejay nodded before silently walking to the door and slowly opening it. Exposing a back room, she saw an over-crowded stock room. She ran her fingers over the dusty shelves while glancing around. Bracing herself she carefully turned the corners of the larger than expected storage unit. She paused when she noticed a particular item on one of the higher-up shelves. Carefully scaling the metal rack, she hoisted herself up to get a closer look at the item. It was a white mask, having a faint appearance to an owl She looked closer, only to flinch when the mask blinked. An unseen figure behind the mask lurched to Lilliana, effectively knocking her off the shelf. She hit the ground with a thud, and could only watch as the entire shelf collapsed on her person. Protecting her head she saw the masked figure run out of the room and into the main shop space.

"Nightwing!" She hollered for her counterpart to be aware as she began to shove pieces of product off, and tried to find something to help her leverage the metal rack off.

In the other room, the figure tried to make a dash for the broken window, only to be knocked over by a flash of black and blue. Nightwing tackled the figure through a glass case, ignoring the shards of safely glass that bounced off his face. Dick was tossed off of the masked man and into the wall. He landed on the floor and pulled out his eskrima sticks, the weapon coming to life with a blue glow, and gave one of his trademark smirks.

"Incoming!" Dick paused at the sound of Bluejay yelling from the back room as a light blue disk flew out of the open back door. The item hit the back of the criminal and a burst of electricity emitted from the disk. Lilliana appeared in the doorway, and froze once she saw the electricity bounce harmlessly off of the assailant. "Uh Nightwing, you might want to turn those up." She gave a quick point to his weapon. He fumbled for a moment before the light shone off his batons even brighter. Nightwing charged at the thief, swinging at the caped creature. The masked criminal skillfully dodged and retaliated, Nightwing managed to catch the side of the mask with his weapon. A slight crack appeared in the side of the eye. Bluejay climbed up on the counter, before throwing herself on the shoulders of the assaliant. Wrapping her knees over their shoulders, Lilliana reached to pull the mask off. As she got her fingers around the edge of the mask, her back was slammed into a wall. Her grip slipped and she was thrown off of the thief's shoulder. As she was flug through the air, she crashed right into Nightwing who was climbing over the counter. They both crashed to the floor.

"Do you come here often?" The batboy quickly flirted with the blue-haired girl that landed onto of him. Rolling her eyes, she climbed off her partner and extend her hand to pull him up with her. Looking around at the wrecked shop, they saw no trace of the figure that caused the mess. Putting her hands on her hips, Lilliana sighed and looked around.

"Geez. Who even was that?" She flipped her hair over her shoulder and walked through the front door of the shop as the police pulled up out front. She walked over to one of the officers and gave a short explanation of what happened, before walking back around to Nightwing to finish their conversation.

"I need to talk to the Bat to be sure, but I can tell you that mask probably isn't the best thing."

"Well that was oddly cryptic." Lilliana looked at Nightwing through the side of her eye. The costumed boy rubbed the back of his neck.

"As soon as I know for sure I'll let you know, but other wise I'm not one to crumple the entire infrastructure of a city lightly." Lilliana reached up and poked his nose playfully.

"Your such a drama queen." She chucked and turned away attempting to cover a yawn.

"And your exhausted." Nightwing took a glance at a clock outside of a bank, it read 3:37am . "Come on Blue, it's getting late. Also, I'm pretty sure we've seen the biggest event of the night." Clenching her jaw, Bluejay turned back around.

"I'm fine," she glanced over at the watch as well.

"Well I'm going to head out. I got class tomorrow what about you?" Nightwing peered at his companion, as he pulled out a grapple.

"You know what. I think I'm pretty tired after all." Lilliana turned around and began down the street. "Goodnight Nightwing."

Alright y'all! The next chapter is really going to delve into the character of the Monroe family. So let me know what you think of Lilliana and Bluejay!


	3. Dick Grayson

Lilliana looked around her, taking in the last look of the city lights in the night before climbing off the rooftop onto the fire escape. She climbed down a level and began to shimmy open her window. One of the other perks of being from on of the richest families in Bludhaven was being in the penthouse apartment in one of the tallest buildings. Ducking through the window, she shut it instantly pausing for a moment listening for any movement in the complex. It was a large two story apartment, with her room upstairs with her aunt. Luckily her siblings rooms were downstairs, which allowed for her to leave easily through the fire escape. Closing the curtains behind her, she quietly walked across the dark hardwood, avoiding her white area rug with her dirty boots. Flickering the lights on in her walkin closet Lilliana pulled a large walnut chest out from under a shelf overloaded with clothes. Thumbing in a combination on the padlock, she lifted the heavy lid open and began to strip. She kicked off her armored over the knee boots and gloves, dropping them inside before shrugging off her jacket, pants, and bodysuit. Lilliana looked in the mirror that hung in the middle of her clothes rack. She stared at the long blue hair that fell from her head and the black mask that allowed her to be herself, not just the eldest Monroe.

"Until tonight." she whispered to herself before peeling the black mask off of her eyes and pulling the wig off by its roots. She dropped those in the box last, and locked the chest shoving it back into its spot. She walked into her bathroom and quickly showered before pulling on a pair of sweatpants. She glanced at her watch and yawned before quite literally falling into bed.

Having only been asleep for about two hours, when her alarm went off at 6:30 Lilliana groggily opened her eyes and sat up in her push bed. Having been Bluejay and the adult of the household for years now, she had a schedule that she finally felt whelmed with, not uncontrollably or hopelessly overwhelmed. Unfortunately this was unkowningly that last morning where her routine would be in place, and she would soon be totally and completely overwhelmed. Going into her closet, she grabbed a fresh pair of jeans and pulled on a tank top on. Padding into her bathroom with a pair of socks on, she ran her fingers through her still drying waves. Moving quickly through her makeup routine, she tossed on a hair of earrings and a couple of accessories before grabbing a oversized cardigan and pulling on a pair of heeled booties. She quickly straightened up her room, made her bed and grabbed her books off of her desk. As she left her room she grabbed her most important accessory of the day, a watch. The watch ticked to 7, as she made her way downstairs. She grabbed a coffee cup out of the cabinet as the coffee pot finished its timed brew. Cradling the streaming hot drink Lilliana sat down on the sofa in the living room. Grabbing her psych book off the coffee table, she flipped it open to the bookmarked chapter. She scanned as she sipped her coffee, rereading the pages from her lesson yesterday. She had been scanning for a couple of minutes before one of the doors opened in the hallway. Glancing up she saw Mallory coming down the hallway with her schoolbag over her shoulder.

"Hey Sweetie." Closing her book, Ana stood up and walked into the kitchen.

"Good morning Ana." The young teenager yawned as she began to pour her own cup of coffee. Lilliana raised her eyebrows, and put her hand on her hip.

"When did you start drinking coffee?" taking a sip of her own, she reached up in the cabinet she grabbed the box of cereal to hand to Mal. The young girl shrugged as she took a sip, blinking her eyes at the taste.

"I just figured its something adults do." Lilliana cocked her head sideways and took a moment to think about her sisters response. Walking around the island to the fridge, she reached in a grabbed the cream from the chill.

"Why do you want to be an adult?" Ana poured some of the sweetener in Mal's cup. Then she mused, "It isn't much fun you know." Mallory chucked and retried the coffee. Nodding at her cup and looking at her older, blonder sister she began to reply,

"I just thought that maybe I could help out around here, that way you didn't have to do it all alone." Mallory poured her bowl of cereal, and sat at the counter next to Lilliana. Turning to face the younger one, Ana put her hand on her little sister's shoulder.

"Oh Mals, everything's okay. Theres no need for you to worry about growing up any quicker." Lilliana shook her head.

"I'm not stupid." Lilliana was about to reassure her sister, when there was a loud thump above their heads. Mal gave a knowing look, before staring at her cereal. "Aunt Gina's awake." Lilliana stood up and roughed Mallory's hair before kissing her head.

"I have everything under control, don't you worry a pretty hair on your head. Besides, you have your hands pretty full with your investigation!" Lilliana began to put together breakfast, bagel and an orange juice. This perked Mal up.

"I really think we're getting really close! We think they live uptown and they might even be roommates!" Grabbing the meal that she prepared, Lilliana walked towards the stairs, glancing at the clock on the wall.

"Such a good idea! Go tell everyone that we're leaving in ten." Ana's heels clicked on the wooden stairs, when she paused at the top of them. "And not all adults drink coffee, theres chocolate milk in the fridge!" Hearing a shuffle in the kitchen and a grateful sigh the blonde turned around and knocked at her Aunts door before opening it. The curtains were still drawn and there was last night's plate on her desk. Setting the breafast next to the empty plate, Lilliana began to pile trash on the plate to take it back downstairs.

As she entered the dusty room, Lilliana coughed. The air was stale and a thick silence seemed to hang in the air. Glancing around the space, her heart ached. The furniture was a thick layer of dust on it, the only piece ever being used was the bed and desk. There were suitcases spilled open in the corner, boxes stacked next to them. Once her Aunt had moved in, she never got the chance to unpack before she lost it. The mental deterioration started slowly at first. Gina was able to go to all the court preceding to fully take custody of the children, but as the weeks went on, Lilliana saw that her Aunt kept forgetting things, the kids school trips, dinner on the stove, the time of day, and eventually she became a recluse forgetting that she even had charges to watch after.

"Jenny!" Her Aunt came around the corner and wrapped her in a hug. Lilliana skillfully slipped out of the embrace.

"Aunt Gina, good morning. I have your breakfast." Ana moved to open the windows, to try and let some fresh air in as she did every morning. And as every morning Gina was at her heels pulling them shut. As much as it pained her to see her Aunt this way, she didn't have another choice. When her parents died, she had refused to have her Aunt take over her parents room, having barley known her. However, the lawyers had told her siblings and herself needed a guardian or the Monroe children would be split up among various foster families. There was no way she was going to let that happen, so as her Aunt began to loose her mind Lillianna decided that she wouldn't let them grow apart.

"Jenny the owls. They'll get you!" Gina turned around and walked to the massive bookshelf in the room. This used to be her parents room, but now it was a mess of things she was used to and things that Gina brought with her. Gina began absentmindedly flipping through one of the hardbacks, Lilliana already been forgotten. Shrugging it off, Lilliana grabbed the plate of trash and left the room, softly closing the door. By the time she got downstairs, all the kids were in the room. She ticked them off the top of her head to make sure she didn't miss any. Mallory, check. James, check. Blake, check. Lucy, check. Lilliana rolled her eyes, and checked her watch. 7:48. He was going to be late.

"Kids, make sure you all have your homework and lunches!" Lilliana darted down the hallway, her heels clicking on the hardwood floor. She stopped in front of the door that had a 'N' scratched into the wood. Her mother scolded Nick for that for weeks, as a child Lilliana had felt bad for her brother receiving the punishment of no TV for a month. She had even kept him up to date with his favorite shows. She knocked on the door, and Nick opened it still wearing his boxers.

"What?"

"Nicky, we're leaving in five minutes!" She gestured to his undressed state, as her brain counted down her schedule. "Why are you not ready?"

"Im going in late today." Nick began to shut the door, as Lilliana threw her foot into the way. She mentally winced as her foot got squished between the moving door and the wooden frame.

"What? Dude, your failing your classes and your attendance is already in jeopardy! Your not going in late." She clenched her jaw and squared her shoulders.

"You don't tell me what to do, Ana." Nick pulled the door back open to look Lilliana in the face. "I'm going in late." He opened the door open a bit further, and Lilliana caught the quick disaster zone that was her brothers room. He closed the door on Ana again. Hard. With her foot still in the path of the door, Lilliana ripped her foot back once the door collided with it again. Bracing her hand on the now closed door, she cradled her foot. Smacking her open palm on the door, she hollered for her brother once more.

"Damnit Nicky!" With a quick glance down the hallway, she saw her youngest sibling Lucy. She took a moment to control herself and take a deep breath. "Don't forget to pick up the twins at 3." Walking down the hallway, favoring her foot, she paused to kiss Lucy's hair, and pull it up into a ponytail. She grabbed her purse and books off of the counter. "Lets go."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"No, Bruce you don't have to send him here. I can handle it." Dick walked down the hallway of the college. He had told Bruce this morning about the events of last night on his way to the coffee shop to pick Lilliana up, and had his thoughts verified. Of course there was no way to be sure, but it made sense with any major city. The Court of Owls. Bruce had just gotten back to him with limited information as not a lot was known about the Court, they've just shown up enough to make a problem of themselves. His adoptive father was still working on the owls in Gotham. "No, you know he doesn't like me. Bruce. No. Bruce!" He let out a heavy sigh, and shoved his phone in his pocket. He made his way out of the building and jogged down the street to the diner around the corner. He usually wasn't late for lunch, but Bruce had his own timetable, and didn't care much for anyone else's. It wasn't even lunch time anymore, as they always ate after their last class let out. They met in the diner and then ate before she had to go pick up the kids. Walking into the 50's deco foot joint, he scanned the booth for his date. Dick lit up when he saw her blonde hair over the top of the corner booth. Stopping at the counter, he put in their usual order, and slid into the set across from her. Lilliana didn't even look up as he got comfortable in the leather seat. He watched her as she typed furiously away on her laptop, her nails tapping on the keyboard. Her jaw was clenched and her shaped brows were bunched. Dick turned his head when their server brought their milkshakes, and thanked the waiter as he accepted the drinks. As he put her chocolate shake in front of her, she threw her head against the seat and snapped her laptop shut.

"I'm going to kill him." Her lips were pressed tightly together as she finally acknowledged Dick. "Sorry." Lilliana looked at Dick with some guilt as he always seemed to be around when Nicky got in trouble. He took a sip of his dessert.

"I've told you a million times, you have a lot on your plate and Nick doesn't help. Don't worry about it." Dick gave Ana a friendly smile, "You know I'm always here for you." Lilliana curled her hand around the cold glass and smile back. She always wished she could tell Dick about her real life, but knew she couldn't. It was her secrets that kept her family together, if anyone knew her life would fall apart. "So what's new with you?" She bit her straw and savored the taste of the rich chocolate.

"Believe it or not, brother troubles." Dick leaned back in his seat. Lilliana stacked all of her schoolwork that she'd been working on ontop of her closed laptop, as she leaned forward and put her elbows on the table.

"Oh?" Lilliana smirked, "Did Damian adopt another animal?" Lilliana had met Damian once, and the child had surprised her. He was incredibly mature for his age and refused to hold a conversation that didn't involve Grayson. He was quite an odd kid. Dick always spoke of his family with the upmost respect, and she wondered if they all got along. Dick laughed out loud, setting the drink on the tape. Lilliana glanced at the glass on the bare table, and automatically grabbed a napkin and placed it under Dick's drink.

"No. I mean, yes Damian got another animal, but no. Jason is coming into town tomorrow for a bit." Dick turned at the waitress bringing them their food. Grayson's smile grew at the sight of food, and eagerly accepted with a thank you. Lilliana tilted her head, her hair brushing against her shoulders.

"The illusive Jason is coming to Bludhaven?" Lilliana grabbed a fry off her place at took a bit of it, Dick nodded while inhaling his burger. This was the one brother that Lilliana had yet to meet. She had even managed to meet Tim for a few minutes while he was in town with Bruce. "Whats the reason for the visit?

"He wants to check out the campus, see what college is like." Dick lied from behind his milkshake. The blonde nodded her head and began to eat her burger, grabbing a fry every other bite. He watched as she se the burger down to look at the time on her wrist.

"Shoot, I have to go get Blake and Lu!" She began to pile her books in her bag, as Dick polished off his sandwich. He pointed at her half finished one, as he did every time. She chuckled before sliding the plate across to him to finish her meal. Grayson quickly finished her burger as well, before standing up with Lilliana. Jogging over to the counter, Dick settled their bill and tipped the waitress and caught up with Lilliana at the exit.

"Need a ride?" He held the door open for her to walk through.

"Your a lifesaver!." Lilliana squeezed his bicep in thanks, her fingers feeling the cool of the leather. The duo made their way to Dick's car, and got inside as Dick began the way to the elementary school. They passed the middle school, and pulled down a couple of blocks to the front of the elementary school when Lilliana's phone rang. As she gathered her things she awnsered it.

"Hello? Yes, speaking. Uh. No, their older brother is picking them up today. What? Are they okay? No. Yeah. I'll figure it out." Lilliana hung up the phone and chucked it into her bag in frustration. Dick let her hand a moment before asking,

"What's wrong?" Dick put the car in park, turning slightly to face his passenger. Lilliana turned and stared at him with a grimace. He could see the anger in her grey eyes, and the tenseness of her jaw.

"Nick was suppose to pick up the twins. Guess whose not there? So now I have to figure out how to pick them up while I'm in a meeting with Blake's teacher."

"I can go get them." Dick offered, causing Lilliana to look in shock. Dick had always said that he would help whenever she needed it, but she never asked. Lilliana never liked things being out of her control.

"i can't ask you to do that. Then you'd have to stay with them until I got home cause my aunts at work, and I don't know how long thats going to be-" Lilliana also didn't like anyone in the apartment with their aunt there. That was a secret she'd like to keep.

"Ana, I don't mind. I'll go pick them up and you take care of Blake and Lucy." Dick assured her he didn't mind, which he really didn't. Not seeing much other choice, Lilliana pulled her house key out of her purse.

"Are you sure?" Lilliana gave him another out. When he rolled his eyes and grabbed the key, she couldn't turn back.

"We've been friends for years, I think I can handle the twins for a bit." Dick smiled and shooed Ana out the care so she wouldn't be late. "Wait. Where do you live?" Even though they had been friends for years, Lilliana had always found a way to keep him away from the loft. It was easier than coming up with more excuses about where her Aunt was.

"51 Tanger, Clarkston building on the top floor." Lilliana hollered from outside the car as Dick winked and pulled away. As Lilliana watched his car turn around the corner, she got a really uneasy feeling that her whole world was about to change.

Please review and let me know what ya'll think! XOXO


	4. Maybe

p class="p1""And that Lilly, is how long it takes to reach the top floor when you press all of the buttons on the elevator." Reaching down and grabbing her purse and grocery bags off the bottom of the elevator carpet. The youngest joyfully squealed at the conclusion of her experiment, and Blake shoved her off the lift and dramatically breathed the hallway class="Apple-converted-space" /span/p  
p class="p1""Freedom!" He cried before bending down to kiss the ground in excitement. Lilliana chuckled as she dug her key out of her purse and fitted it in the lock of the only door in the hallway. She juggled the bags in her arms to she expertly used her foot and shoulder to maneuver to door open, as the small children ran past her engaged in a game of life or death tag. The top of Blake's head hit the bottom of one of the paper bags, tilting it out of Lilliana's arms. In her attempt to catch the bag, she dropped another two. She knelt down to grab all the spilt contents of the bags, and began to scoop them into the crumpled paper. Picking them all back up, Ana struggled her way to the counter, and plopped them on the island. Glancing into the living room from the kitchen, she saw the twins on the couch pouring over newspaper articles- she assumed they were about the two protectors of Bludhaven. She began to empty the bags and put everything in their respective places, running through her night in her head. She looked up as she heard Blake holler, and saw Lucy climbed on his back like a little monkey, pulling at his class="Apple-converted-space" /span/p  
p class="p1""Hey!" She tossed the milk in the fridge and elbowed the door shut, as she began to move to detach the two. She hadn't made it halfway before Dick came swooping around the corner grabbing Lucy up and giving her a light toss in the air. At the same time, he produced a Nerf gun out of nowhere and took a shot at Blake, Lucy still tossed over his class="Apple-converted-space" /spanThe sight of Dick running around with the kids brought a smile to her face. Grayson's eyes darted up from his mock fight, and flashed a toothy grin at the blonde standing in the kitchen. Lucy was in a fit of giggles as Dick gently tossed her on the loveseat next to the twins who where attempting to hold down their papers from the gusts of people running past. To anyone outside of Lilliana's situation it would have been a lovely sight, it would seem to be a young couple playing with younger siblings in a moment of joy. From the blonde's perspective, it was almost a nightmare. She had an outsider in her home. Although her would trust him with her life, she wouldn't trust the kid's life with him. She cringed at the realization, but she also had realized she didn't trust anyone with their lives besides herself. Dick was so close to all of their secrets by being in the house, even if he hadn't come to find them yet. James tapped her arm, pulling her out of her class="Apple-converted-space" /span/p  
p class="p1""Ana, we got it!" Turning she grabbed the boy's shoulder and finished putting the groceries away. She raised her eyebrow and smiled at her brother, prompting the young boy to continue. "They are cousins from Iceland who trained in martial arts, and they were abandoned here when their guardian forgot them at the airport." Lilliana paused for a moment and stared at James. Behind him, his twin approached and patted his shoulder./p  
p class="p1""Yeah that does sound ridiculous B." Mallory bunched her face in annoyance. Black rolled his class="Apple-converted-space" /span/p  
p class="p1""It was your idea Mal."span class="Apple-converted-space" /span/p  
p class="p1""Your just gonna toss her under the bus like that?" Ana put her hand on her hip, closing the pantry. "Now what did Papa always tell you?" She watched them both roll their eyes with a class="Apple-converted-space" /span/p  
p class="p1""Family sticks together." The two spoke in class="Apple-converted-space" /span/p  
p class="p1""Forever and always." Ana glanced at Dick still playing with the youngest Monroes, before turing her eyes to the twins and spoke in a hush, "Gina?"span class="Apple-converted-space" /span/p  
p class="p1""She's been upstairs all day." Mallory began./p  
p class="p1""And we've kept him downstairs." Blake finished. Ana sighed in class="Apple-converted-space" /span/p  
p class="p1""Good job, now go back to being kids." They turned back and fell into another conversation, attempting to mix up their theory on the vigillanties. "And for heaven's sake, please stop finishing each others thoughts!"span class="Apple-converted-space" /spanShe turned around and glanced at her watch, noting the time. Taking advantage of the young ones being busy with each other, she began to continue her daily tasks. Popping over the dishwasher she began to unload the machine, piling up her arms full of glassware. Her heels clicking around the tile flooring she was methodically putting the dishes in their proper homes. Going back for another trip, she again loaded her arms up and stood so repeat the action. Instead she ran smack into Dick, tragically looking a glass mug in the collision. Luckily for the glassware, the Dick Grayson was able to save the other few pieces that snuck their way out of Ana's grasp. Quickly finishing the dishes, she had turned around to find Dick loading the dirty plates and utensils in the machine. "Oh you don't have to do that." Reaching into the small nook between the fridge and the counter, she pulled out a broom and dust pan. span class="Apple-converted-space" /span/p  
p class="p1""I'm perfectly capable of helping out." He watched her sweep up the broken pieces of the demolished dish, and dispose of the shards. He leaned on the counter, staring intently at his best class="Apple-converted-space" /span/p  
p class="p1""So you have any dinner plans for these youths or should I make a reservation for a candlelight dinner for…" He trailed off as he ran a quick count in his head and on his fingers, "seven?" He smiled his typical cheesy smile. Lilliana cocked her head to the side, and chuckled./p  
p class="p1""I ordered pizza already, it should be here soon. Also you missed Nick." Lilliana gave the rest of the kitchen a quick sweep while she had the broom class="Apple-converted-space" /span/p  
p class="p1""Eh, I figured he didn't count." Dick pulled out his phone and send a quick text. Noting his phone, Ana quickly took the chance to get the man out of the apartment, away from her class="Apple-converted-space" /span/p  
p class="p1""Thank you for watching the twins. I don't mean to keep you." She gave a light point to his phone. "Isn't Jason coming into town tonight?"span class="Apple-converted-space" /span/p  
p class="p1""I told you it's no worries. I don't have anywhere to be, the renegade isn't coming until tomorrow."span class="Apple-converted-space" /spanDick ran his fingers through his hair, fluffing his thick black locks. "Besides you owe me pizza." He class="Apple-converted-space" /spanLilliana couldn't say she was glad he was staying, it gave him longer to catch on to the strangeness of her house, but she wasn't disappointed either. As long as she had known Dick, she was constantly torn between wanting to have a normal relationship, and be a normal young adult. But whenever she had reasoned with herself that should could do everything, something came around to remind her that she would never be a normal adult, not with her family or her night job. Dick had always been so kind about her choice not to pursue a relationship, and always remained by her side as a friend. She would never blame his for his flirtatious joke, after all he was her best friend and always knew when to stop. Ana always loved the time she spent with Grayson, and truly did love the giant man-child, she would trust him with her life and all of her secrets if it was her choice. Yet, it wasn't her choice, nor her life. It was the kids lives that were at stake if someone were to figure this whole scheme out that she had constructed over the years. Luckily, a buzz on the call button saved her from having to respond. "I'll go grab the pizza." Dick hopped off the bar stool and headed for the door./p  
p class="p1""My wallets in my purse!" The blonde called out and Dick looked over his shoulder, with an eyebrow class="Apple-converted-space" /span/p  
p class="p1""When do I every let you pay for food?" The batboy grabbed to door and pulled it open, closing it on his friend yelling after him. It wasn't more than a few seconds after the Monroe's heard the elevator ding shut, that they all gathered in the kitchen. The children extremely curious about the raven haired boy./p  
p class="p1""Dick's awesome!" Black mock shot his Nerf gun at the siblings./p  
p class="p1""He is so smart!" James clutched his notebook, which had new side notes of the vigillanties in Grayson's class="Apple-converted-space" /span/p  
p class="p1""He helped us find new sources to look at!" Mallory pushed up her glasses in excitement./p  
p class="p1""Are you two dating?!" Lucy looked up at Lilliana with doe like eyes. Pressing the heel of her hand into her forehead she cut off their overlapping chatter./p  
p class="p1""No, and that is not important right now. What's important is that we make sure everything is smooth tonight. If I have to go upstairs, you guys have to keep Dick busy." The youths nodded their head. They children thought that Gina was just an eccentric quack, which she was. They weren't aware of the extent that their aunts situation was, they just knew that it was their family secret. "Now go grab plates." It was only a few moments later that Dick came bounding back into the apartment with pizza boxes balanced on one hand. Lillianna dug in her bag and pulled out her psych class="Apple-converted-space" /span/p  
p class="p1""Okay Kiddos. Who wants what?" Dick set the boxes on the inland and began to dish out slices to the younger people. Once Dick made sure that they all had their food, he turned to Lilliana, who sat on a barstool tapping her foot in the air. She sipped on a glass of water, her rose lipstick clinging to the glass rim, as she flipped through the pages of the textbook. "And for you?"span class="Apple-converted-space" /span/p  
p class="p1""Uh, whatever is left is fine." Lilliana didn't look up as she responded, instead began scribbling notes in her notebook. Glancing up when Dick held out a slice of pizza, she thanked him before folding it in half to eat. While the little ones at the the dining table at their food and hollered about random things, Lilianna and Dick sat at the island. Finishing her her assignment Lilliana closed her book, and finished off her water. The kids finished their pizza and dropped their plates in the dishwasher, as Liliiana began to wipe up the table, cleaning from the meal her family had just demolished. As the kids began to go their separate ways and Lilliana was cleaning the kitchen and straightening up the living room, she began to think more of Grayson. He was acting so well with all of the kids, they could get rambunctious quite often. The twins would become immersed in their research for hours only whispering to each other, yet he was able to get them to step away from their laptops and research to get them to look at the whole picture. Blake had so much energy, that he would run around for hours. Many frames and vases had fallen victim to his play fights. Dick played with him, saving all of the fixtures from the menace. And then Lucy. Being the youngest, she never really knew their parents, and Lilliana felt the need to give her some extra attention as Lu was always at her heels. The young girl looked up to Lilliana the most. With thought of the little one, the blonde glanced over and felt her heart melt. She stood straight up, and bit her lip absent-mindedly. Grayson sat on the floor with a fake teacup in his hand. Lucy was running around with a plastic tiara on her head, her hair pointing in every which direction. She watched them play at the make believe tea party. Dick glanced over and caught her eye, flashing a goofy grin as he raised his teacup. Having been caught staring, Lilliana blushed and turned away tucking her hair behind her ear. Lilliana began to think that, well, maybe this could class="Apple-converted-space" /span/p  
p class="p2" /p  
p class="p2"_/p  
p class="p2" /p  
p class="p2"Reveiw and let me know what you think!/p  
p class="p2"XOXO/p  
p class="p2" /p 


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